One thing stuck out in the statistics on tickets issued at Deals Gap last weekend: Two tickets for “Riding Standing Up”. I just could not see how this could or should be against the law. I contacted Mr. Browning to see if I could find out why riding standing up deserves a ticket. There are many circumstances where this is exactly the right thing to do. It is the safe thing to do. If a giant pothole appears in front of you that you cannot swerve around what do you do? Stand up. Really rough railroad tracks? Stand up. How do dirt bike riders ride? Standing up. Here is the answer I got:
Tank,The biker must keep his foot on footpegs. I don’t know of any law that states a rider can not stand. If the rider somehow becomes reckless in the way he or she is standing, that may be up to the discretion of the patrol officer. Mike Browning
Director, Public Affairs/PIO
Department of Safety
Ok, that makes sense to me. I am glad riding standing up is not a crime. That still leaves this question: What were the two tickets for? Maybe they were reckless in the way they did it. Still not real clear. I would love to hear from one of the people who got this ticket.
In other news, WATE Channel 6 in Knoxville ran a story on the crackdown. The news story proves that some of the guys who ride the Gap just don’t get it. They found this guy, Adam Barnett, from Bloomington, Illinois who was showing support for the crackdown. He says that the cops are slowing everyone down and that it is a good thing because it is making things safer for everybody. Click here to watch the report.
Did you notice something? This guy is wearing a non-DOT helmet! What do you think this mental midget would be saying if he had been ticketed on the helmet law? Yes, he would be angry. If this guy was really worried about safety you would think he would be wearing a helmet. One thing that shows clearly is that nobody thinks they are the problem. We all need to take a good look at ourselves before we start passing blame on others.